Conversation with TARKAN ANLAR (CEO Scotty) Uber of scooters

today I have the pleasure of speaking
with Tarkin onler in Istanbul Turkey
Tarkin is an entrepreneur whose current
creation is Scotty the uber of mopeds
that helps alleviate commute times in
Istanbul where the traffic is absolutely
atrocious Tarkin is an interesting super
likable guy with some solid wisdom for
entrepreneurs we talk about money
lifestyle and leveraging the world to
your advantage here we go with Tarkin on
their dissolute lately this is just to
talk with you yeah I talk with this
smart guys who made billions even under
companies what I saw in them they
they’re smart of course but I think the
things that that make them successful
are not the smart decisions are the
crazy decisions that they made so just
like Airbnb yeah you need to be smart of
course but crazy enough to do stupid
things to take that risk
well I think you have to be you have to
do the hardest thing which is go away
from the herd right like nobody I think
it’s in our biology to sort of ostracize
to put out the person that doesn’t do
what everyone is doing
Yeah right and it’s there’s difficulty
in that there’s challenge because
there’s loneliness and you have to in a
way do it on your own in your way you
have to hear all this noise because when
you’re nothing and you haven’t proved
anything yet everyone’s like oh yeah
great idea that yeah that’s gonna work
you know what I mean there’s that that
weird voice that comes at you also but
then like right now you have Scottie on
the road and it probably those people
were like oh yeah great idea that’s
awesome
until you do this the most stupid idea
everyone told me that it is impossible
because you will not find the helmet
suitable for everyone you will not like
there is one investor wrote me 12
reasons why Scottie will fail and I
wrote replied even we doesn’t have one
motorbike driver I replied just see us
in one month don’t believe me just watch
oh so that’s like a motivator yeah yeah
yeah and I I forgot about that message
and I saw it when he sent me a message
later a few months later at Arkham what
reading I checked what we have written
and I saw that there and I said Walter
can sometimes you look cool hey do my
friend um sit like this smart cuz we got
the camera oh okay and you’re the start
like yeah like I’m gonna share and then
more that way yeah dude and it’s a lot
of like for me it’s been a lot of trial
and error man a lot like I have a
business that functions right now in
that I have to work on I had to go back
to the states twice to fire and hire
people it functions well it lets me live
this global lifestyle I’m not
complaining but do I love it is it like
I wake up and I love it no I don’t I’m
proud of it I’m proud of what it is I’m
proud it’s the best service in that
space but what I’m working on now is has
way more power and meaning connecting
with people you’re crazy in this day and
age if you don’t harness all the social
media networks and like the internet and
how many people you can reach now like
that expir that crazy experiment and
also panco in the countryside near Davos
it reached a lot of people like it
touched a lot of people and Voice of
America took it up and now I they take
all my content and it’s like it is not a
bragging thing at all because I feel
like it’s just starting but I took that
step at that one decision man of saying
[ __ ] it I’m gonna go live in the
countryside and you inspired me man
thing like you it was
in me but I think I need your voice at
that very time to say to go do that cool
experience and I was like I thought
about it afterwards there is a Turkish
philosopher maybe you heard through me
of course he’s Iranian though isn’t it
yeah here in the internet okay and then
actually yeah we love him so we try to
keep him he says how how much rain drops
the bucket will get water as much as it
is five you know so I believe people
everyone talks you can listen any one
but two things are happening because you
have this size and you back inside so
this is because of you like people who I
if I would not be talking someone
someone would sell something and you
would do that I think it’s because you
had that motivation is right because
like we we read mostly by people
generally with the same book same movies
watching the same thing but everyone is
inspired differently from the movies
right mm-hmm
so I believe like it is because of your
insight if you have that motivation you
can do anything well dude I want to get
this in the podcast so I’m gonna start
and then I’m gonna I’m gonna get into
spaces yeah that’s good it’s good wisdom
yeah how would you turn I’m 33 Wow man
so yeah like a little child okay okay
today I’m here with Tarkin onler a
Turkish entrepreneur who resides in
Istanbul who is currently working on
Scotty
an uber type app for mopeds that
alleviates its users from much the
atrocious traffic of Istanbul it’s
really bad here Tarkin attributes
Ukraine for much of his success in this
conversation I want to get into the
details on how he does it all welcome
Carthon really cool meeting up with you
now we met like a year
yeah in Kiev and you’re one of the first
people I met there same and now it’s
funny I’m on your home turf here in
Istanbul I came down here because I had
to get a visa I like a residency visa to
live in keys Wow yeah it’s your lon visa
so I feel like I pick it up today
actually but um to get in your story I
want to well firstly how did you how did
you get started in all this like this
Scotty its I just took it over yeah I
got on it just like goober moped picked
me up gave me a helmet gave me some shin
guards which was cool we breezed over
the bridge to the other side of the city
yeah like where did this idea come from
how did it start
yeah I lived my life in the coast east
of Turkey which was a small town there
were no traffic jam no time loss like
you leave one day you can do 10 meetings
you can do all day and go to swimming
come back and do whatever you want work
in anyway and party at the night when I
when I come here I feel like if you do
one meeting it is enough because the
city is like wasting your time and it’s
so unproductive it’s so unofficial you
know right like I hated the traffic when
I moved here and I stopped I’m driving
since I am 17 years old uh-huh and I
stopped driving car here I didn’t drive
car I was finding a friend or using taxi
because I didn’t want to lose my time
and I was reading book while I’m on
public transportation or texts but I was
not never driving because I hated to
traffic striking in there was turning me
mad and I one day I heard that uber is
coming here haha and I I had a b2b
business mm-hmm I missed it to my father
to buy a car to start working in over
and he is intrapreneur right like she he
said he will manage it with two drivers
will make more so you’re gonna start
like a little
business yeah yeah come on Hans get a
few hours in and then it become four
cars five guards t-shirts and we started
to change the shifts of drivers mm-hmm
with with the cars but it was we were
losing like one and a half our each
shift changed and it was really on
efficient and I said hey why don’t we
change these drivers with motorbikes you
know because motor why did you say it is
like a joke or you you why not I mean
let’s try it’s like it’s all about
trying and right learning like make it
if it is wrong what we are going to lose
like $2,000 because of buying a
motorbike or something like that
sure and we start to change drivers with
motor wagon drivers like loved it
because they said oh it’s so fun not to
waste time in traffic this we are going
through it and also we sold it in one
day we are earning like 10 working hours
okay this is really precious yeah yeah
and we saw that it was much more
efficient to change the drivers not to
brake when I said well I should this
this is an opportunity like I started to
make a research on the internet if there
are similar businesses around the world
and I saw Kojak in Indonesia rather
listen I love actually their business
model as I started to think that if it
is possible to do that here I talked
with motorbike communities and like
people who sell motorbike equipments
anyway anyone I could find in like 90%
of terms that it is the most stupid idea
they have ever heard and I said this is
a great opportunity because 10% thinks
this is this is possible but it was
working in Jakarta that yeah yeah which
is the the worst traffic in the world
yeah yeah yeah nice and actually when
people say it is not possible it it’s
some kind of like motivates me more yeah
I want to try I want
more and I said we gonna do it back then
I had a business by the way and I said
it I worked to make that business five
years to make it profitable mm-hmm and
it was profitable for six months and I
said I’m creating that job and everyone
around me thought that that’s the most
stupid thing ever you know like you
built this company mm-hmm like you spent
five years to be at this company and its
profitable for last six months yeah you
are quitting for because you want to try
something you didn’t sell it you quit it
I created yeah but you learned in those
in those years you learned a lot right
yeah that business made me to learn how
to start startups how to do financials
how to do business planning go to market
strategies anything because like it was
bootstrap so we didn’t raise any money
so it was difficult to hire engineers so
I learned coding it was difficult to
find market in guys so I learned
marketing it was yeah like I taught
myself anything possible yeah because I
didn’t have money to hire she learned
yeah every aspect of the task so when I
was hiring I was paying it from my
packet so I was just being very careful
and I learnt hiring so it’s it sounds
like this offer taught a lot of things
so you didn’t get you didn’t get this
education or there’s no how in
university no I I learned it you learned
a new iteration but I don’t I can say
that I learned a lot there sure yeah so
so Scotty’s up and running now in is to
maja long’s it been going on for it’s
nine months I think nine months okay and
it’s I got on this morning the moped
yeah it came in like three minutes maybe
something like that right yeah he gave
me shin guards he gave me a helmet he
gave me the Scottie as
Scotty from Star Trek yeah which is very
middle which is very cool so like brings
out like a fun vibe when you meet the
guy and you do that right but I know
Ukraine has been part of this this
journey for you so how are you involved
with Ukraine right now yeah so it’s so
it’s a great story in my opinion because
on my last stop
mhm I was working with Ukrainian
developers mostly like freelancing
asking to them work together and also we
had some people working with Ukraine and
I I really love working with Ukrainian
developers why is that there are many
reasons first we are in same time zone
second are very close right with Ukraine
so I can travel anywhere I want
yeah it’s wrong one and a half or maybe
okay yeah yeah if it depends I fly from
Savi ha mm-hmm to live if it’s like one
enough shabeeha being the second Airport
yeah in close to not too far for me yes
and the third is I really think that the
developers I work in Ukraine hard
disciplined south discipline this is
very important if you’re working
remotely right because when you are
working remotely you can’t see these
guys you know you don’t know if they’re
disciplined or not you sure you need to
trust and luckily the people I’m working
are the most self disciplined people
I’ve know and there are hard workers
they know how the startups works uh-huh
and yeah they just they’re easy to work
with
yeah yeah I mean we are working with
them I’m working with the Ukrainian
developers last three years me and my I
built this our new team from scratch our
CTO is Ukrainian to saw the first hires
great and also it’s so funny story
mm-hmm
I found first Ukrainian developer on
Friday and he started working on Monday
I said I’m coming Thursday and he said
are you crazy like next Thursday
I didn’t no not next Thursday this
Thursday it’s like we just met Friday
and you’re playing here to meet with me
on Thursday I said yes and I went there
we met with two developers and that
Thursday we started working on Scotty so
were you looking around the world at
this time we like India as a possibility
you create the possibility or you just
knew in the beginning Ukraine was that
place I think I I worked with Indian
developers as well the biggest issue
there I think the timezone issue and
it’s not as close as Ukraine so it’s
well yeah actually it was one of my
thing that how about the quality of work
India versus Ukraine actually it depends
how you are how people you are looking
for it there are good people and bad
people everywhere everywhere so so I
think I think it depends you know if if
I would be close to India I might work
within the area hmm so Ukraine has been
like definitely part of your success
here yeah yeah actually like we have the
biggest hiring success ratio in Ukraine
like each people we hire was successful
in Italy adapted to team and started
working quickly so I think I don’t know
maybe like because of the the soul of
the team we already have there motivates
the people who join or or we are super
lucky that we are matching with the best
guys right woody what are your thoughts
of Ukraine I mean that’s a big question
but in general what do you think of the
country I think
it’s like it’s full of smart people like
there are lots of smart engineers there
and the startup community started to
born there
Romilly just raise tons of money from
Ukraine what’s up one from Ukraine you
know there are so many so many smart
people doing great stuff there mm-hmm
and I think that will change the future
of Ukraine but Ukraine’s known for
corruption bad economics bad politics
what but this space it’s sort of its own
its own frequency right like it doesn’t
matter if there’s corruption right you
do deal with much corruption or not so
much ah thank you I’m not very political
person I’m mostly like technical person
but sure there are there are wrong
things happening everywhere know what
I’m saying to you deal personally with
Scotty with your business do you have to
deal with corruption totally fine now
okay so I think what what I think about
the corruption and other things in
Ukraine if people just focus the things
that they can change in start-up
communities or share life if they change
the country will change the world will
change so they I think we should focus
always to the things that we can change
we can impact right like there’s I
forget who said this but he said you
know there’s so many people out to
change the course of politics or the way
the world works but their own house is
not in order
there the room is messy they don’t have
their own things together and it’s
beneficial I feel also like get your own
house in order
get your own things figure it out
somehow start at that level yeah and
then it starts growing from there yeah
instead of trying to go right to the top
and sing the Sun because
like in Ukraine it’s I don’t get
involved with the politics it’s not my
it’s not my thing it’s not my space
there but it doesn’t look like a bunch
of people that have the best interest of
the country that are in power and
calling the shots right but it’s 2018
now right you have a start-up which
works with other people’s modes where
your developments out of keeve where I
think you got funding out of San
Francisco right so it’s it’s this global
paradigm right and you don’t necessarily
need those old structures to be
determinate of your success yeah
and I I found that to be true for myself
there are other peoples and startups and
obviously what you’re doing yeah well
yeah what do you thought was super
important in my opinion you know if you
I think we should I start my story
started with the bankruptcy of my father
by the way
oh that’s so so interesting that’s the
reason that I moved Istanbul so I was
happy in marmaris it’s a great life
there it was like party at night hang
out by the beach
Bloomberg no triangle yeah it’s an
amazing life really but because of my
father’s main crops I moved here to make
money
yeah actually the business opportunity
is that I can see it for I started to
stay on my sisters coach I didn’t have
money to rent but how long ago was this
six five six years ago so you were like
you were like 27 yeah I had love
starting over on a couch I then started
from zero I started from – because my
father had all two people you know Neera
Hey because of the bankruptcy lots of
things and so I started from below zero
and what I believe I I couldn’t change
and I couldn’t make the turkey better on
those times is before I can be helpful
to myself so first thing I focus is to
change my life
I always like wanted to start my own
business so I I worked as a taxi driver
in the beginning mm-hmm
to make money and to build my startup at
the same time like part-time taxi and I
was trying to build many startups I
failed starts the game failed starts
again anyway but first I thought made I
changed my life then I started changed
people around me like Ange like real
friend no no no no I mean like be
helpful to change to in good way yeah
and like I supported someone someone
starts to work with me with me and made
money for his family and this started
this way but when you get bigger you
impact more people’s life and you make
it better so now we are we have 4000
drivers we are changing there and their
families lives also people living using
Tecate is like almost half million now
and their lives changing because they
are earning two hours a day maybe
mm-hmm so we started to impact more
people and once we grow we will impact
more people and change their lives and
make we will make starts to make the
city more beautiful then if we make the
city live more beautiful we can make the
country more beautiful and then make the
world more B so it’s it’s a ripple
effect right yeah if you bring say you
know a thousand people that’s the
average person knows a thousand people
right and you bring those thousand
people up right a little bit you have a
little mark in their lives and then
those thousands people each bring a
little up yeah and then I think it’s
like three or four layers deep and you
have the whole world yeah it’s something
crazy like that versus bringing those
around you a little bit down right it’s
like it has this massive weight it’s
it’s like a fulcrum a lot of leverage
and I found that two in the last couple
years the more I put out that’s positive
I don’t look for anything in return
yeah but it just like builds on itself
that then comes back yeah first time we
met I was telling you about
how big the universe and how we small we
are here and how big is the time of the
creation of the universe and how small
our time in the world once you realize
that I think those times that think that
I was realizing this once you realize
how small we are
mm-hmm I think you don’t you stop
worrying about lots of things
when you stop worrying about lots of
things you can achieve anything in my
opinion so do you think you can achieve
you came from debt yeah you feel like
you can achieve anything one of those
times
no now you feel like you can achieve
anything you want to achieve you can
achieve ah I believe we can do I can do
lots of things
because I have great people around me
and I’m it’s very like you often with
those people anything but do you think
it’s no luck it’s probably it’s probably
a research there is a greatcoat about it
it’s a big coincidence that I get
luckier when I work harder oh so you
mean you’re not you’re not sitting on a
couch every day and hanging out and
drinking tea on the Bosphorus straits I
fear in the startup space and you’re
working your life yeah I can’t life
after my father’s bankruptcy it’s I
don’t remember that I had a weekend off
maybe maybe after they are in Mary my
Mary on Saturday on Sunday I had holiday
and Monday I started working I’m not
kidding and since then I’m working 16
hours a day I think reading every day
three hours watching videos or listening
to audiobooks trying to improve myself
because the person five years ago was
not capable of being the things that
today I’m doing
and the person five years later would I
want him to be much better than Who I am
right now so I’m trying to improve
myself to do things possible what do you
what do you think is the big difference
culturally between Turkey and Ukraine
huh nice question
I think people in Turkey are more
business oriented they they are more and
trip renew Europe they know how to sell
their selves right and do businesses
like actually not do businesses but
start things and try to grow of it right
but the technical background but maybe
this is because the people I met I had
this vision maybe I didn’t meet with
founders they’re sure grain that’s that
might be the reason but what I saw the
the technical things the discipline of
work is higher in Ukraine and to feel
yeah
in Turkish entrepreneurs is hired to
achieve something you know to change the
things so they in a big spectrum there’s
more of an entrepreneurial spirit here
yes
but in Ukraine there’s more of a
technical how to get things done yes if
you need ok so then there’s more maybe
there’s a lack of leadership in Ukraine
ah do you know that err no I I think
it’s because of probably they are highly
focused on political problems or
corruption and things like that they
they started to be demotivated because
of the things happening around them
right right well I mean look at the
history
the country’s right see heaven Istanbul
Constantinople Byzantium right this was
the centre of the world especially of
trade right
and so there’s merchants there’s traders
and at one time it was in wait like
diverse like New York City like everyone
was here in a way it still feels like
the center of the world to me you have
14 which is women in full cover
ninja-style and then you have Betty Tosh
and there’s miniskirts right and there’s
everything in-between in this city but I
think it’s in the DNA here right to like
to be a merchant it’s a cell and Ukraine
from my short experience there in that
history look if you ever held the torch
long enough someone took it away yeah
whether that be the Russians or the
polish like blue divas had it’s been
under five different flags in the last
hundred years right so I think in that
ecosystem
whenever you stood up too tall you were
taken down right and maybe that’s
culturally in in the people but that’s
not to say there aren’t people achieving
amazing things that are amazing
entrepreneurs in the future it is gonna
be by far brighter because what I see in
that country is the young people look
they don’t have great leadership right
they don’t great in general great
business leadership great political
leadership but they like they poke up
yeah some of them either get beat down
by that or the others go through it
alright which makes them stronger I feel
yeah which doesn’t makes them way more
capable which makes them mature quicker
too in the process there is a there is a
research uh-huh you know the shark
research maybe you know that there are
small fishes and the sharks they put a
glass between them shorts try to eat
those fishes and get to the glass and
they can’t eat so they learn that they
are not capable of eating these small
fishes okay then the scientists remove
the glass and see is that sharks even
doesn’t try to eat those small fishes
because they learned that it they will
not be able to
yes oh I forgot the term for this like
the fail to learn that learnt failure or
something like that there’s a term for
this
but once the gunshot one of the shark
inside that tank will eat little small
fish the others will see and learn what
I think about Ukraine – what’s up –
grammarly and there are new successful
entrepreneurs will born and then the
other sharks will see that they are
capable of doing great stuff yeah and it
will change fall leadership thing and
thinking and trip Renier will of Ukraine
in my opinion yeah good point good point
so what are your what are your plans
with Ukraine do you plan to as Scotty
expands you plan to expand so by this
year we are planning to hire around 100
engineers there we have a little office
already whoa we reach yeah or like
around 10 and 10 developers already hmm
and by the end of this year probably we
will have around 100 developers there so
more developers there than in Turkey we
have here as well so we have two teams
yeah we are going to Ukraine sometimes
to work together they are coming here
sometimes yeah so yeah we are weird it’s
great for the teams as well to be
motivated you know they come from
Ukraine yeah they see the city they
enjoy cool and they go back it’s a big
motivation for them also for our
developers here they all go to Ukraine
see there and they motivate as well yeah
and we hear the prayer right now yeah
it’s interesting it’s special this city
is special like every time I come here
absolutely I’m in love with it yeah I
love Ukraine – I love Keith but to be
able to have this monster world city an
hour and 45 minutes away coming from the
US everything was always like eleven
thirteen hours and it felt so
disconnected and now everything feels
super connected okay what do you what do
you love the most about Ukraine what do
you love the least you see you’ve been
there what four or five times
oh-ho no actually it is maybe a 1516
time can last two years okay so you can
you can take this however you want it
but like culturally or business-wise or
however you want to look at it what do
you love the most what do you love the
least okay
what I love most actually well I don’t
like most to be honest I see that people
are still really like I don’t know they
just they just they seem like they lost
their hope about the future of Ukraine
the people I talk to me the young people
yeah I talk with young people most yeah
whenever I talk I feel like they they
are losing their place their hope
towards their country and like most of
them wants to go abroad and work there
or live another life I think I believe
in the change is possible everywhere
Ukraine is a great look in a great
location like a great country and it
could be much better and the only thing
only people can change its future are
the young people of Ukraine right yeah
so this is the most thing that I don’t
like about Ukraine maybe
but would be the most thing I like there
are there are big part of it he’s worked
really hard yeah and they’re like they
they want to change things and they they
when you come up with great idea and
once they believe in you they become
like a part of your family
they are like holding tight and let’s go
let’s do they’re very loyal yeah yeah
also I don’t feel any difference working
with Adobe co-op or next to me or a
person in Ukraine that’s cool because I
run an absentee business my business is
in the US and there’s for me there’s a
psychology yeah I have great people in
place now button it’s a balance between
being liked and feared to some degree
you have to be you have to be liked
because if you’re not then who wants to
work it’s not a dictatorship right yeah
yeah but if you’re too nice and give
everything away then you get taken
advantage of yeah so I think your
situation is easier what your CTO being
there and like it’s an hour and 45
minutes which is nice
sorry go ahead I I believe people are
naturally good like you know they people
are good yeah and we need to trust them
and I am NOT talking about to be used or
something we trust them tell them that
you trust them and expect the best from
them and just watch most of the time I
get great results over it like because
there are two types of this you are lean
people or bad or people aren’t good
don’t think there’s good and bad in all
of us we all have we all have this
notion it depends on the manager what
you bring out of ya so you can make you
can manage the people in both ways there
successful companies the manager are
there there’s a manager things people
are bad and make all the things you need
to come at work this you can go to
toilet this much sure sure sure
also there are managers that believe
people are good we believe in you guys
that you will do the best and then
manage it that way the both can work and
different businesses are different
companies but it but I how company you
want to be how how you want to work with
people this is this is our life right
changes II right that environment that
you choose is gonna change how you are
as a person
also it attracts the people yeah how
they want to work you know which type of
company they want to work mm-hmm
so maybe we are getting lucky because of
that you know they see other people and
they start to work like that so what do
you um what advice would you give young
Ukrainians you have an outside
perspective but you understand the place
better than most because you’re up there
a lot what advice would you give so in
my case I I want to Silicon Valley many
times San Francisco I saw there I
learned lots of things from great people
there mm-hmm and I come back to my
country and trying to do best for it
mm-hmm so I if any cranium can find a
possibility to go to San Francisco or
like other countries they should if they
are willing to do some businesses like
startups right they should go they
should see and I don’t know if they want
to stay there or come back but there
opportunities all over the world so they
can come back to their country and start
great things because the country is have
great resource of human like I don’t
like calling humans very sorry your
didn’t the same catagory soil and energy
yeah so there are great
to do great things you don’t need many
things to make what’s up just some great
people a dream and start working on
granite it came from Ukraine why not
another what’s up or big companies but I
know Yan from whatsapp and he stayed
there yeah but still it’s from Ukraine
it’s from Ukraine but I like the point
of you know people are gonna go with
their lives are better right and that’s
a personal decision monetarily most
choices are gonna be better in US but
then you have to count it calculate what
kind of lifestyle do you want yeah I
find Ukraine to be more in a way despite
all the problems more sane like less
anxiety yeah you know it in me yeah they
have a lot of holidays yeah yeah they’re
not in general grinding as hard as the
Americans American can get very
one-dimensional work and only work yeah
and in the startup space that’s sort of
how it is yeah right doesn’t matter
where you are maybe it’s because I’m an
outsider in Ukraine now and I don’t feel
these pressures as much but there’s a
little more of a sanity to it yeah then
America were you know I’m just talking
to a friend last night there’s just a
lot of anxiety there to be honest
I’m speaking in general depends who
you’re talking to but yeah Ukraine I’m
staying there for a while I really I
really enjoy it and I see all these
opportunities arising and I see people
like you figuring it out and my friend
Juke who I’m gonna do you know also
we’re gonna do a video next week about
his startup he went from San Francisco
to Ukraine for the opportunity because
he figured that out so alright Turk on
anything else you’d like to say about
startup advice for people have life
philosophy so you know
when I was starting Scotty III told I
had business but on those on this
business I had difficulty to get
payments on time it because we working
with municipalities mm-hmm so when I was
starting this Scotty I really didn’t
have money
I just can’t adapt from my friends
credit card $800 and I started with that
yeah Wow
so I started with adapt of $800 this is
fast working on Scotty and now we are
the fastest growing startup of Turkey
and biggest success story of raising
money probably in Turkey
how much did you raise in total we
raised okay this is you know right but a
lot yeah we are we are reason enough to
run our startup to grow it so in the
millions yeah yeah yeah amazing from
negative 800 yes and it’s less than one
year nine months so what I advise mm-hmm
really find it you don’t need to find a
great idea but find some idea start
working on it there are lots of money in
the world they can raise the money it’s
not it’s not that difficult if they have
a great team great idea and they believe
they can achieve it there are
hardworking units so no excuses for
where you live no excuses for how much
money you have yes it’s a great summary
yeah just just have a dream believe in
yourself
find great people to work together and
work your ass off yeah that’s it
that’s it really we started skating in a
coffee shop I worked like two three
months in a coffee shop really we didn’t
have an office space and but that wasn’t
even long ago there’s how are you a year
no it’s like mine and then now you have
this office and there’s four floor
floors yeah yeah
actually six months seven a five months
ago we were in one apartment and when
Ukrainian developer was staying in our
apartment we were working in the hall
and we were not fitting because we are
team professed we hired one floor of
this building we rent one floor of this
building ten second floor enters more
than four floor
so actually you know the the starts are
humble
nobody don’t they expect that everybody
are gonna believe in you don’t expect
that lots of things will be easy don’t
expect many things just work your heart
s off and believe in yourself
keep working try fail try fail really
and once you get the right point the
money finds you the opportunity to find
see the people points you like the whole
universe starts to help you to become
successful dargah inspiration let’s do
it to the camera
Scottie when you’re in Istanbul download
Scottie and well I lost my Scottie
virginity how are we go man it was cool
and ok I will say this too it’s like
it’s way more interesting if you’re an
adventurous type to be on the back of a
scooter then in the back of a taxi car
lastly are you gonna do this anywhere
else are you just gonna stay in Istanbul
you will do its internationally yeah
world and maybe not Ukraine is too cold
in the winners there are lots of other
opportunities in other countries so we
our goal is to help people wasting less
time I mean cool so that’s the best gift
you can give this dunya because we all
have less time Yeah right on Tarkin
could see you bro thank you thank you
that was awesome dude
yeah Thank You Vera can I really enjoy
like you like that yeah because when I’m
talking with you I’m soul you know I
feel like and not to be like you’re my
brother and I’m taking you with my
brother so I didn’t feel like I am
making an interview I was just feeling
like cool how I would talk with you
that’s so nice cool brisket I love doing
it I really do I think it’s the power of
podcasts now and YouTube and Facebook
yes like also it is fun you know I just
I really want to help entrepreneurs any
people that I can help to do they go you
can have a lot of impact in that space
yeah and people like to even myself just
it’s human you need to be told you can
make sure happen do it right
yeah yeah yeah it’s like you’re because
there’s that ego there who’s in the way
that of that might be that voice of
doubt as I mentioned we need examples
you know examples like people who
achieve things so you get inspired if he
can do I can do you know well that’s why
you that’s why I respect a lot of people
in Ukraine who are going for it because
they’re examples for the most part yes
suck yeah they’re really bad look
capitalism is not in the DNA there yeah
like you were saying right like look in
America you you’re brought it from day
one understanding there’s like 20
choices of toothpaste yeah you get every
marketing message every advertising man
you learn you learn Tom I use my
existing that all right being a shark
you know a shark and so for better or
for worse I’m not saying that gives you
a better life you know to understand
marketing and advertising but if you’re
if you’re a tune if you have a business
mind it’s sort of like you’ve been given
that no and in Ukraine they have
yeah but it is something that you can
learn what to people you know if five
years ago if I was here
aha and five year ago Tom would come
here to join Scottie I would say [ __ ]
off like you are not disciplined you
don’t know [ __ ] right and you look like
you know not a hard-worker guy you like
partying a lot in marmaris what if she
didn’t have that party you if you didn’t
party at all you would be here right now
being like five I never partied I agree
I I’m not thinking about that I’m
talking about you know well I was such a
guy before some of her rich dad Chris
partying going swimming that’s
responsible but once you once we
bankrupt it it was like a hit into my
head come on you need to change and I
saw that okay so what isolate people can
change people can learn people can
become better and better right so it’s
so counterintuitive though because you
think look at I have some well I have a
million dollars therefore I’ll be more
successful money makes money in many
ways it does but it’s a mentality right
so not having money cultivates a
mentality like the survival I need to
make [ __ ] happen mentality right so like
Kaminsky this the man who’s starting or
started unit city a two million dollar
tech Innovation Center he didn’t come
from money in the beginning hmm and his
advice was just start and don’t complain
that’s it three there but still I don’t
I don’t care I to be honest I want to
say this because one on one they are you
sure this is the money is like something
I need to make this dream happen you
know it’s not something I’m going after
this is something you’re not going off
that the Ferrari in the car care you
don’t care no really this is this is not
that’s not my dream I don’t I had when I
when I was 18 I had Aldi I had the car
that I wanted I just live you don’t miss
that stuff I know I am NOT looking for
that I just enjoy to be – impacting more
people wives in good way and it’s
motivating so happier it’s really makes
making me I think that’s the key
you know Maslow yeah self-actualization
that top part of the pyramid is like how
many people’s lives can you affect in a
positive way yeah it actually it’s
selfish in a way like yeah with my
content I put out there if people get
back to me I feel good in that they feel
good so it works yeah yeah yeah I think
I agree it was just to pull down money
for the sake of pulling down money like
I look at these oligarchs a lot of these
Aligarh a lot of these politicians and
Ukraine they don’t look happy
yeah they don’t you a lot of the rich
are very guarded they’re they’re very
like closed off because look they could
lose it tomorrow who knows but it just
seems not like a fun space to be in
yeah I was telling this to my friends a
lot I was selling diamonds yeah and I
was selling diamonds to rich people and
most of rich people are buying diamonds
to make their wives happy themselves
happy yeah so they needed to buy diamond
to be happy so what I saw that fifty
percent male if I don’t clear the person
but sure the same person of rich people
are unhappy the poor people in my
opinion the ISIL there are two kids
three kids on the street grabbing
something from the trash and they found
something nice and they were happy and
enjoying it three kids and at the same
time my cousin yeah who was crying
because his PlayStation was not working
yeah so you know well if you have 10
billion in you’re down to 9 billion yeah
you’re most likely under happier a guy
that has from $800 to $1,200 right so I
think
as I mentioned before you know we are
focusing on ourselves a lot like sure
why do we want Ferrari to be happy right
if we bring that the Ferrari will bring
us happiness course but if you can be
happy with on it until you it’s not your
call anyone anymore right yeah yeah so
as I mentioned before the universe is
too big we are very small the time frame
is too long and we are living in a short
amount of time so I like experiencing
things and I would love to travel the
world maybe instead of buying Ferrari
yeah because I think that grows you as a
human being it develops your your your
consciousness studies yourself and
actually you don’t need a lot of money
you’ve traveled the world right maybe
here’s what you want here insanity yeah
I save money by traveling there I’m
serious
San Francisco is insanely expensive my
business is gonna its operating from
there or not right now
no joke living in cave traveling to
Istanbul I’m actually staying at a
pretty nice place right now yes I wanted
to treat myself to a nice place yeah a
preview of the Bosphorus hanging out in
this amazing world city eating great
food but spending less money if I just
stayed at home in my apartment yeah in
San Francisco what would change so just
think about yeah I think about that a
lot even if you would have worse
experience I believe if you had more
money why maybe you will come with your
jet and you wouldn’t meet with those
great people you met in the plane well I
think look where humans are meant to
connect with each other like no matter
what technology we want to put on it at
the end of the day this FaceTime is cool
dude it’s better than doing a
teleconference call and a lot of the
experiences say these wealthier
experiences like flying your private jet
as cool as that could be and I’d sure
I’d love to get on one and that would be
cool but over the long run yeah you
detach yourself from me man
and I think there’s a sadness in that
yeah I mean you don’t want to be Brad
Pitt where you can’t walk down the
street anywhere and enjoy your freedom
or connecting with random strangers
right yeah for me just connecting with
random people in the city brings me a
lot of a lot of happiness so in the
Western experience quite often we’re
trying to compartmentalize our spaces in
our time to be all about the individual
and there’s qualities in that being the
individual you can start something by
yourself or whatnot but I think the
negative side is that I don’t feel in
Ukraine is that you become dispatched
from everyone and for example I did this
local train and Ukraine called PLAs card
right and it’s like you’re basically
sharing the sleeping quarters with
everyone and everyone’s walking around
and the Ukrainians a lot of them do not
like it they thought I was crazy doing
this PLAs card I didn’t think it was
crazy at all I’m like you want to see a
country see how people travel the
average person right I loved it I eat
chocolate with the people next to me
I played card to these other people we
all hung out I play with some kids it
was it was very human and cool so more
money if you’re always separating
yourself just by the factor of one that
you’re separating yourself and more
comfortable could lead to less happiness
I agree I honestly believe in that I
like public transportation yeah not
everyday if I’m doing a nine-to-five no
in every day on the metro that will make
me crazy yeah for sure yeah but when I’m
in Istanbul I can easily take the taxi I
couldn’t take the scottie because I had
baggage but I take the tramway in yeah
and you get to see a city the inner
workings of a city you get to see how
people behave do people read on the
metro and in Istanbul or not do they
read them in the metro and keef are they
animated do they connect are they closed
this is how you get to understand a
society you know if I did all very fast
baby so I think yeah I totally agree
about this you know but this is the
reason I was not looking for money in my
opinion like I was trying to do
something but not running after money
because I had a different story in of
the most interpreters that hard life
difficult situations then worked hard
and become somewhere I’ve had a great
life when I was kid yeah I was my father
was one of the richest in the town and I
had I was living in the past like a
heaven in a place and I had a great
childhood you know I
then we bankrupted okay and I needed to
change things but you were able to
change yeah okay yeah I think I I think
I wanted to change it through a lot if
you want something a lot you were like
the Buddha he went from such wealth and
opulence to like so this reason I was
not I when I needed money my father was
sending so I was never in a need of
money and I still don’t look for money I
don’t have money in my pockets I have
read it when I need I asked our
accountant as some credits to my credit
card and I’m not I don’t like book I’ve
ears just to random things and even I
have less money I was doing the same
when I have a lot more money I will be
asked the same in my opinion so it’s um
why I think you grew up in it and you
saw that it wasn’t happiness cuz you saw
when it all went away
yeah so for those people that don’t grow
up in it like if you want to look at a
lot of sports players in the u.s. so a
lot of these guys are black inner-city
they grew up with nothing right and they
get the money and they go oh yeah flash
like I’m buying everything yeah right
it’s because they didn’t have it you had
a lot of it and you realize from being
young age for example I lived with
parents look living the American dream
yeah we didn’t travel at all zero not
one family vacation but we lived in a
very nice house but everything was on
credit and everything was financed and
they ended up losing it actually and I
saw in that journey growing up my father
is always purchasing things that he
couldn’t really afford cuz in mariksa
America is an anomaly with that like you
can buy a bunch of [ __ ] on credit and
you don’t really have the money nobody
can make the payments right no the
second he can’t make the payments he
lose it all that’s what happened it
didn’t bring him any happiness it was
quick and dopamine hits of that purchase
and feeling excited that lasted a very
short amount of time and then it would
lead to more like it would be like a
hangover effect after-party I’d be like
even it low or low and then you gotta
hit it up again and lower low and I’ve
found in my adult life experience has
given me a lot more happiness since in
learning about myself and how to be a
better person cuz that’s a constant
journey right yeah yeah I feel like I’m
a much better person than it was five
years ago and I in five years I hope to
be much better than I am now I know my
demons I know the things I need to work
on but yeah the materialistic road I’m
not saying it doesn’t bring happiness
I’m not saying poverty is amazing or
great by any stretch but I think the
material is the package that were Souls
and there’s a lot of [ __ ] laced in
it there’s a there’s a lot that’s
missing yeah also you know once you
start spending for example if you buy a
real fancy house and you have a shitty
car they will say oh you had this much
house but you have a shitty car so you
need to buy a better car and you have
quite a few gun
if you play that game it never ends
because you’re not gonna be Bill Gates
and then when you’re Bill Gates what
does he do he gives it up oh no it’s
attached to you you become you said you
need to finance those things yeah if you
are working somewhere you can’t quit
your job and you thought it’s all your
freedom basic when you sell your freedom
freedom is not necessarily the country
you live in it’s the circumstances you
live in and you’re creating a lot of
those sure you could say in Turkey
there’s less freedom now than there was
years ago or you could say in the u.s.
there’s less freedom
sure then there was years ago but a lot
of it is a personal decision seriously
all right my dad put his hands out and
in the system handcuffed him America can
be very restrictive man and you spend
time there
it’s a great system if you can figure it
out and you can leverage it yeah like
the system the law works pretty well the
the entrepreneurial energy is good but
you can also get stuck in it yeah and I
know so many people they don’t they
don’t see or get to experience much
outside of that ecosystem and if that’s
what you like then awesome I’m not
judging at all but I feel like I saw my
father only work no vacation and it
looked like a way of slavery to be
honest he didn’t like it
yeah yeah you know working hard on
something you don’t like it’s like a
sliver yeah every pot yeah what if I was
telling to my prince like five years ago
yeah four years ago when I was working
hard and they were saying are you crazy
you don’t have a life I say come on just
think about this what do you like
traveling shopping for example you’re
traveling just imagine someone is paying
you because we are traveling towards can
you imagine this and you keep traveling
right and people say are you crazy you
are traveling about isn’t so what I
enjoy it so my work is
me like this I enjoy everything
candle-making these tears so and I’m
making money of it like it’s like double
oh I earn double you know if I had that
free time and I was not earning money
out of it I would still be doing this
time that’s it that’s the beauty but I
like so this project I did in the
seven-part documentary series in the
south of Ukraine was I lived with this
family and I got their story they’re
refugees from war it wasn’t easy at all
but it also brought me like the greatest
richness you know of any experience and
it was it was I I loved the director
Tarkovsky right the former Soviet
director and he said something like yeah
work is his life in his life is his work
and there’s no separation between the
two and when you love what you’re doing
yeah there is no separation so I would
get I wouldn’t get I would get in those
spaces where I was love this by the way
tarik offski he was like a famous Soviet
director made amazing beautiful films he
was known for his very long shots he’s
very philosophical slow-moving but
beautiful not for everybody but
interesting so when I was in on this
project when I would like I have my
let’s call it work Facebook page and my
personal one I would want to put
everything and now I want to put
everything on both pages because my life
is what I’m doing and what I’m doing is
my life ya know there’s nothing there’s
not really much of a difference now of
course you want to do mortar you want to
achieve more you want to accomplish more
but I’m starting to get into that space
yeah it like you this can become
something to make interviews with all
the intrapreneurs around the world yeah
I mean the world the world died for that
because I love I always loved for I grew
up in the whitest place ever man like
the Mexican restaurant had a white
dishwasher seriously that’s why
I’ve always been fascinated with
foreigners I’ve always loved different
people most it’s human to like which
your tribe is yeah that’s the normality
you want to stay within what’s normal
and what’s different is the outside and
you want to retract from that yeah not
one is right or wrong but I’ve always
been fascinated with the other and I
feel so blessed to live in the world and
be part of the world now and be down
here talking with you a Turkish guy
creating something that’s working here
using development in Ukraine and using
financing out of the US and this
beautiful man you’re a new thing you’re
leveraging the world dude you know
you’re not stuck to one system mmm and
this is this is like a new phenomenon
really you know this is a new reality
and paradigm we live it so brother yeah
I’ve been reading I’ve been recording
all this – okay you can because I like I
think what you I think when you can make
things more real and truly pure that’s
like when you connect with people the
best yeah yeah so you’re easy cuz we
know each other and you you can relax in
front of the camera and the microphones
yeah so good work my friend thank you
you